Thursday, February 13, 2014

Some in church may be homophobic, says Archbishop Martin

Some people in the Catholic Church in Ireland may be homophobic, according to Archbishop of Dublin Dr Diarmuid Martin.

Speaking on RTE radio this past Sunday afternoon, Dr Martin said that it is
also possible that Catholic Church teachings could be used "in a
homophobic way", which the Church should be careful not to do during
debates on same sex marriage in the run up to the referendum.

"Debates
on issues like this have to be carried out in a mature way so that
people can freely express their views" while at the same time being
respectful and not causing offence," he said.

"Anyone who grew up
in Ireland would have told jokes that were pointed at the gay community,
at Travellers. It is part of the culture we grew up in, but we have to
grow out of it."

He reiterated Church beliefs that marriage is a
union between a man and a woman only, but that same sex couples can form
a union through other methods.

Since the first public civil
partnership was celebrated in April 2011, more than 2,600 people become
civil partners, up ntil the end of 2013.